Week 5: Jesus and the Wise Men

Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him. Matthew 2:2

Matthew 2

While many people were overjoyed and immediately praised God upon hearing the news of Jesus’ birth, some reacted differently. One of these people was King Herod. As we learned earlier in this series, Bethlehem was the city where Mary and Joseph traveled to participate in the census, and ultimately, where Jesus had been born.

A group of wise men heard that a Savior would be born so they traveled to visit Jesus in Bethlehem. They came across King Herod and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him” (Matthew 2:2). Herod was outraged that there was another king to be born in Bethlehem so he tricked the wise men into telling him more about Jesus, lying and saying that he wanted to go worship the baby, when he really wanted to kill him.

The wise men continued to follow the star to Bethlehem and when they arrived, they praised Jesus and gave Him gifts, expressing their joy and gratefulness through worship. But when it was time to return home, God warned the wise men through a dream that Herod was not to be trusted and they needed to take a different route home. An angel appeared to Joseph, delivering the same news about Herod so Joseph, Mary and Jesus went to Nazareth—their new home.

Just as the star led the wise men to Jesus, God guides us along our journey. And just as an angel appeared to the wise men warning them of King Herod’s plan, God directs and protects us. We can trust that He will lead us to safety and into His great plans for our lives just as He did with the wise men. They faithfully followed God and He wants you to follow Him as well. Anyone can become a follower of God and enter into His great for their lives. Even when things seem scary or unknown, we can trust in Him.